FERRYBOAT BERKELEY

Historical Landmark

Description: The steam ferryboat Berkeley was the first successful West Coast-built and operated ferry to be driven by a screw propeller as opposed to side-wheels. Built by the famous Union Iron Workers of San Francisco in 1898, the ferry operated until 1958 as part of the San Francisco Bay ferry system. The Berkeley is the oldest steel-hulled ferry on the West Coast and the earliest double-ended ferryboat to survive with her original historic fabric intact. After the 1906 San Francisco earthquake the Berkeley assisted in evacuating refugees to Oakland.